Nikki Cross Talks Life On The Road And The Wrestling Grind

Nikki Cross has had an incredible rise through the WWE ranks so far, and as one-half of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships with Alexa Bliss, Cross has even more on her plate now. Speaking with Ronda Rousey’s site in an interview, Cross described how she likes to unwind on the road, the grind of the wrestling world, and much more about her career.

When it comes to unwinding on the road, Cross says that something she’s been doing now is going after her Master’s degree. “I actually applied for a course at Edinburgh University in Scotland, and they do … a completely online degree, which obviously suits me because I want to do this stuff,” she said. “And I actually got the email a couple of days ago that I’ve been accepted into the course. So that was actually great news.”

Outside of her love for academics, Cross credits the love of her craft with being able to handle the grind of being a professional wrestler. Thanks to her days in NXT and the independent circuit, Cross says she can handle things much better.

“I think that independent wresting just really showed me that if you really put your mind to something, you will reach your goals and you’ll achieve what you want to achieve,” she said. “The scene on the independent scene was such a rush. … I got to travel the world. I got to wrestle in Japan and wrestle in Europe and wrestle in Canada and wrestle all over the United Kingdom. So I really got to see the world before coming to NXT. That’s where I worked with different styles, worked with different people, and I gained so much life experience. … You know, I started in wrestling when I was 18 years old, so I feel like all my adulthood has been in this world, been in wrestling.”

Thankfully for Cross, her star looks like it’s ready to continue rising, and with her and Alexa Bliss still defending their tag team championships, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see Cross continue to rise into one of the best wrestlers the WWE has to offer.